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Palatka staff identify 118 vacant parcels; Live Local Act posting obligation noted
Summary
Staff inventory showed 118 city-owned vacant parcels (16 potentially redevelopable, 83 limited small-scale, 19 likely not developable); staff warned parcels identified for affordable housing may need to be posted online under the Live Local Act and announced an RFP for a realtor to market listed lots.
City planning staff presented an inventory of vacant city-owned parcels and asked commissioners for guidance on how to proceed with potential redevelopment for affordable housing.
Staff said the packet flagged 118 parcels in total: 16 considered potential redevelopment candidates for single-family residential use, 83 suitable only for limited small-scale uses and 19 probably not developable. The planning director noted minimum lot-size rules and grandfathering—staff said many existing lots are legally grandfathered despite not meeting current minimum area standards.
A staff/legal speaker said that if the city intends to identify parcels for affordable housing, state law (the Live Local Act) requires the city to post such properties on its website; staff emphasized the current inventory was informational and that no decision had yet been made to pursue marketing for affordable housing. Commissioners asked staff to produce a clearer, addressable spreadsheet and to verify GIS data for parcels marked 'unassigned.'
Staff also noted seven parcels currently posted on the city's website with little response and said the city had issued an RFP for a realtor to improve marketing; commissioners agreed that more readable lists (tax IDs, addresses and GIS confirmation) would help decision-making. Staff additionally described two past property transactions (one sold May 2024; another listed in the packet as December 2025) and summarized a completed land swap that returned a lot near the water treatment plant to the city to protect the wellfield.
Commissioners asked staff to return with verified parcel data, clearer reporting formats and fiscal analyses of how parcels might be used to support affordable housing or other city objectives.
